Choices
by MetaphysicalNinja
Summary: Stiles struggles with a decision that will change his life forever. He's leaving his life in Beacon Hills behind for something that he hopes will give him the peace of mind he deserves. Part one of the Triskelion series.


**Author's Note: This is my first attempt at a songfic, and my first Teen Wolf fic. The only thing you really need to know before you start is that a large portion of this fic is a flashback. The flashback is in**_ italics_. **The song lyrics are centered**_ italics**.**_ **Enjoy :)**

Four years. It seemed like so much longer; it seemed like a lifetime had passed. Staring through the window at the pale blue horizon, Stiles can't help but wonder if he made the right decision. Even the morning sky is reminding him of Derek. The very beauty of nature is eclipsed by the images that seemed to be forever burned in his mind. Then again, Derek's eyes were only blue when he shifted, when he was closest to nature. Maybe it wasn't an accident that Stiles found both beautiful. He doesn't know; he can't bring himself to care. All he cares about at the moment is one not-so-simple fact: Derek's cobalt orbs stare back at him from the Los Angeles skyline, and it's making him question his choice. Stiles can't remember the first time he saw that piercing blue gaze. Much more vivid is the moment he saw the intense green eyes looking into his, through his, straight into his very being, and knew he was in love.

_In the light of the sun, is there anyone? Oh it has begun...  
Oh dear you look so lost, eyes are red and tears are shed,  
This world you must've crossed... she said..._

_Stiles was crouched over a bit of homework, which, having been neglected for a few days, was more of a pile than anything. He had spent the last week with Scott and Isaac trying to track down an Omega that was causing trouble around town. It wasn't very often that an Omega managed to evade a pack in its own territory, and that it was happening had everyone a little on edge. While Scott had been doing most of the footwork with Isaac and Allison, Stiles, Lydia and even Deaton locked themselves in at Deaton's office, pouring over tomes of ancient Druid lore, searching for anything that might help them track the Omega down. So far, they managed to find nothing useful at all, and the Omega seemed to vanish without a trace when its midnight romps were over._

_The result was, of course, Homework Mountain. Deaton, the brilliant Emissary that he is, suggested to Scott that he let Stiles take the night off to address his ever-growing homework pile. Scott, the perfect best friend that he is, made it clear that he was, under no circumstances, going to leave Stiles out of any sort of action they may get into. Deaton, once again showing off his wonderful Emissary skills, proceeded to call Sheriff Stilinsky and inform him that Ms. Morrell, as the school counselor, had access to each student's grades. He further informed the Sheriff that, while it isn't normal for the school counselor to share confidential information with her brother, she knew that Stiles and Deaton were close, and she wanted to inform Deaton of Stiles's failing grade in Chemistry to see if there was any way he could offer assistance._

_So Stiles sat, drooped over his Chemistry text, doodling absentmindedly on the corner of the page he was reading. He had no clue how much time had passed, but he figured it must have been long enough to warrant a break._

_He hopped up from his desk, and bounced down the stairs with every intention of raiding the kitchen. Not one second after his foot had left the bottom step, the front door busted open, and there stood Derek Hale. He looked terrible; there were long gashes over his entire body. That's all Stiles had time to see, though, because after a whispered "tell no one", Derek collapsed._

_Stiles blinked a couple of times, not quite sure what to do. Then he noticed the blood. There was a lot of it. The average human body contains about 5.6 liters of blood. In the short time Derek had been lying on the floor, the pool that collected around him had grown, and if Stiles had to take a guess, he would say that Derek had already lost a third of that. His first instinct was to call Deaton, but Derek's request shot that idea to Hell. If he woke up and realized Stiles had called someone despite his request, well... whatever happened wouldn't be good. Stiles remembered that his father kept an emergency kit in his office. He ran to get it, then returned to Derek, who was still lying face-down in his own blood. Bracing himself for the worst, Stiles turned him over to see the extent of the damage. What he saw made his blood run cold._

_Derek was, almost literally, torn to pieces. He obviously wasn't healing on his own. He had numerous gashes across his chest, arms, and face. Trying to count the wounds would have been an exercise in futility; it was much easier to count the number of places Derek hadn't been sliced open. The worst, though, was a deep...trench...that ran from his left cheekbone, down the side of his face, across his neck, down his torso, before finally thinning out somewhere near his right hip. This looked to be the most life-threatening (not that any of the others weren't), and definitely needed his attention before he could move Derek out of the foyer. He set to work cleansing and binding the wound, pulling together anything he knew about medicine and werewolves. It took him almost twenty minutes to stop the bleeding, and he was worried it might be too late. Derek continues to breathe, however, and his pulse, though weak, becomes steady. Stiles lets out a sigh of relief, and takes a minute to gather himself before he begins the laborious task of getting the werewolf up the stairs._

_He takes Derek into the bathroom and places him in the bathtub. He hesitates only briefly before removing his clothes, and then begins cleaning the rest of Derek's wounds, taking care to avoid the one he already bandaged. Once he finished, he dressed Derek in some of his largest clothes (it's not like he hadn't worn them before), and was left with the task of finding somewhere to actually put the werewolf. He briefly entertained the notion of leaving him in the bathtub as payback for being such a sourpuss all the time. Tempting as that idea was, he couldn't bring himself to do that to anyone, no matter who they are or how annoying they happen to be._

_He settled, instead, for putting Derek in his own bed. He had a mountain of homework to get through, anyway, and probably wouldn't be using it anytime in the near future. Once he gets Derek settled, he takes a step back and looks the older boy (man? No... boy. Derek may be physically older, but in some ways he's just as young as the rest of them) over. He's never seen Derek quite this vulnerable, with his guard completely down. He didn't know how long he'd been staring, but eventually he pulled his gaze away and turned to Mount Education, which really doesn't even have a dent in it._

_Try as he might, Stiles just couldn't bring himself to focus on Chemistry anymore. There were too many questions going through his mind. What did Derek get into that messed him up that badly? Why did he go into it alone? Why didn't he want anyone to know what he was doing? Why come to Stiles of all people?_

_Eventually he gave up on the homework, and turned to face Derek again. He couldn't stop looking at him. Derek Hale was the rock on which everyone else leaned on. When no one else was strong, he was. It amazed Stiles to see that in his moment of weakness and vulnerability, Derek chose to come to him. It made him feel...different. Special. It was something only he was allowed to see, and that made him happy in a way he had never been happy before._

_A few hours passed, and Stiles must have dozed off at some point, because the next thing Stiles knew, he was opening his eyes to a dark room. He turned on a lamp and glanced over to check on Derek. To his surprise, the werewolf's breathing had evened out, and most of the less intense wounds had begun to heal. He looked...almost normal. His skin was back to its usual, dark complexion, and the look of pain that plagued his face earlier had gone. It was replaced with a look of complete relaxation and contentment._

_Stiles ogled Derek a bit longer before his stomach decided that, having been neglected in favor of Derek once already, it was time for some food. He went down the stairs and gathered enough junk food to feed 12 people, grabbed a glass of water, and headed back up the stairs. When he walked in and glanced at Derek, green eyes met his._

_"You're awake."_

_"Someone's observant." Derek made a move to sit up, but Stiles was already by his side, placing a hand on his arm to keep him down. Derek looked into his eyes, and Stiles lost all sense of where he was. All that mattered for that moment was Derek Hale, the beautiful, strong person lying in his bed. He leaned in, and Derek did the same. The moment their lips met, a feeling flooded Stiles that was like none other. He felt right. He felt as though nothing could ever be wrong in the world again. It was a slow, gentle kiss; there was no need to rush this. Whatever it was,_

_When they pulled apart, Derek was still looking at Stiles with that same blank expression. Stiles grinned, and after a moment, so did Derek. This would be an adventure. It would be exciting. Exciting was good. Stiles loved exciting._

_You don't know me, you don't even care, oh yeah,  
She said  
You don't know me, and you don't wear my chains... oh yeah,_

_Essential yet appealed, carry all your thoughts across_  
_An open field,_  
_When flowers gaze at you... they're not the only ones who cry_  
_When they see you_  
_She said..._

Stiles misses those days terribly. Being in love was the best thing that ever happened to him. Realizing that he loved Derek Hale had been traumatic, but it was also exciting. It was an adventure, and everyone knew Stiles loved adventure. In the end, he got the guy, and though that's not something he ever saw coming, he could honestly say it was the single best thing that had ever happened to him.

It's a shame, really, that things took a turn for the worst, as they had. It's hard for Stiles to pick an exact moment, but somewhere, his relationship with Derek had become something...less. At first, he barely noticed it. Meals got quieter, "date nights" got fewer and farther in between. They sat farther apart. Hands never got held, cuddles never got had. Things just sort of drifted. Then the fights started. They weren't the typical lover's quarrels either. They were crazy, loud, scary fights. The sort of fights that happen when two people can no longer exist around each other. Small, insignificant things would start them, and once the fights started, there was absolutely no stopping them. They would sometimes continue well into the night, and usually ended with Derek storming off into the night.

Stiles just... got tired of the way things were between them. He told Derek he was leaving, spent a week at home with his dad making preparations, and here he is.

_You don't know me, you don't even care, oh yeah,  
She said  
You don't know me, and you don't wear my chains... oh yeah,_

_She said I think I'll go to Boston..._  
_I think I'll start a new life,_  
_I think I'll start it over, where no one knows my name,_  
_I'll get out of California, I'm tired of the weather,_  
_I think I'll get a lover and fly him out to Spain..._  
_Oh yeah and I think I'll go to Boston,_  
_I think that I'm just tired_  
_I think I need a new town, to leave this all behind..._  
_I think I need a sunrise, I'm tired of the sunset,_  
_I hear it's nice in the Summer, some snow would be nice... oh yeah,_

_You don't know me, you don't even care, oh yeah..._

Eyes still glued to the skyline, it takes Stiles a minute to realize the sun has risen. He checks the time on his phone. **8:05**. As he looks back at the buildings, he knows beyond a shadow of a doubt that the choice he's making is the right one. Sure it may hurt at first. Being away from Derek is going to take so much getting used to it's not even funny. He's also going to miss his dad, but once he explained things, his dad, however much it hurt to let go, gave his unyielding support.

He would miss Scott more than anyone. Scott, his best friend since age three, more his brother than his friend. When he told Scott what it was he intended to do, Scott protested. Strongly. When Stiles didn't relent, Scott refused to talk to him. The silence between them lasted almost two weeks, ending only last night as Stiles made his preparations. Scott finally came around to say goodbye to his friend. It kills Stiles to think he will be abandoning Scott, but if anyone can make it through this, Scott will. He's strong. For the love of God he's a true Alpha. He's got Allison, Kira, Isaac, Ethan and Aiden, and well... Just about everyone there to support him. This is the one time that Stiles had to look out for himself before he thought about anyone else. He _needs_ this.

It's that though that gives him the strength to to what he needs to do. It's that thought that gives him the energy to put one foot in front of the other, and walk himself to the gate, down the awkward corridor, and onto the plane that will take him away from Beacon Hills, and forward, to start his new life.

A few hundred miles away and just over an hour later, Derek Hale wakes to an empty bed, which he sits up on to look around an equally empty apartment. A moment passes in which he doesn't know what to do. Then, before he can stop it, a choked sob escapes from his mouth. It quickly becomes a loud roar. He roars until his throat is raw and no longer heals, and then he shifts back and continues to cry. He doesn't stop crying for quite some time.

_Boston... where no one knows my name... yeah  
Where no one knows my name...  
Where no one knows my name...  
Boston...  
No one knows my name.  
*~~~~~~*_

**End Notes: I hope you enjoyed it :) The sequel will be named Lamentations, and will be posted soon. If you'd like a notification when it's posted, subscribe to me..**

**I know I left some loose ends, but that's what sequels are for. I'm planning for this to be a trilogy, with another one-shot songfic and a much longer, final work.**

**The song I used is called Boston, and it's by Augustana. I don't own any rights to it, or any other publically recognizable scenes, characters, places etc... I just like to borrow them and leave them in better condition than I found them.**

**If you loved it, let me know by reviewing :)**


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